MLB Proposes Major Changes to Draft

Changes include end to high school eligibility, international draft

Konnor Griffin Photo Credit: WTM

As detailed by Baseball America, MLB, in its collective bargaining with the MLB Players Association, has proposed sweeping changes to the amateur draft. For the most part, the changes would take effect with the 2028 draft. Of course, MLB’s proposal has no realistic chance of being adopted fully in the next collective bargaining agreement, but parts of it might.

The most noteworthy change would be an end to teams drafting prep players. Specifically, only players who turn 20 by September 1 of the draft year would be eligible, plus all draftees would have to be two years past their high school graduating class. That would effectively eliminate prep players and many junior college players. On the other hand, college players typically would become eligible as sophomores.

The draft would be cut back from 20 to 12 rounds. MLB would not reduce further the number of full-season minor league affiliates. That would remain at 120. It also would agree not to try to reduce the number of affiliates during its negotiations with minor league owners in the next negotiations over a player development agreement, which will be in 2030.

By eliminating prep draftees and keeping the minors at their current size, MLB purportedly is hoping to capitalize on the increasing popularity of college baseball. It obviously would be a huge boon to college teams. Increasing interest at the college level, without further whacking the minors, might help the sport connect better with younger fans, an area where MLB has generally been quite blind. On the other hand, in a follow-up article, BA has the reaction among MLB scouts, which is overwhelmingly negative.

Among other things, scouts strongly dispute the notion that college development is nearly as valuable as that in the pros. One scout also noted that there are many older players in the minors, with young prospects playing against too many 24-year-olds. (I’ve actually been thinking the same thing recently. IMO, the Pirates specifically are having to juggle the assignments of college draftees who aren’t really prospects and younger guys who are, with the latter getting stuck at lower levels than they might be able to handle.)

The proposed draft change that will no doubt draw the most resistance from the union is the imposition of hard slots for bonuses, with the amounts set at a level that will reduce overall draftee compensation to less than half of where it was last year. The total, MLB-wide bonuses for each draft would be $200M, presumably divided among the 30 teams based on where their slots fall.

There’d also be an international draft with the same spending limit. In fact, according to BA, the idea would be to reduce domestic draft bonuses to the current level of spending on the international front. The two drafts would be separate. It’s not clear whether the international draft would also be 12 rounds. BA simply says the two drafts would be “equivalent,” so that seems to be implied.

The minimum age for the international draft would be a year older than the current minimum for international signings. Players would have to be 18 by September 1 of the year they sign, instead of the current 17. In BA’s words, “[t]his would effectively eliminate the 2027 international signing class,” as the players’ ages would have to “catch up” to the new requirement. That means another $200M in total player compensation being eliminated.

Teams could sign any number of undrafted players, but the maximum bonus would be $10,000, a large reduction from the current $125,000. Presumably, undrafted players would be more inclined to stay in college for another year. So, again, less money would go to players, which seems to be something of a pattern. Undrafted players would be eligible for the Rule 5 draft after just two seasons.

More provisions:

• All draft picks, not just competitive balance picks, could be traded within limits:

  • Teams could only trade picks for the upcoming draft, so, for example, no trades of 2029 picks until after the 2028 draft.

  • No team could trade away its first-round pick in two consecutive drafts.

  • No team could accumulate more than three extra picks in the first three rounds.

  • Trades during the draft would have to be completed by the end of the first round.

• No more competitive balance picks.

• The lottery would be reduced from the top six to the top four. The differing lottery rules for revenue-sharing payees and payors would be eliminated. No team could receive a lottery pick in more than three consecutive years.

These additional changes are based on the idea that the CBA will include a cap/floor payroll system, with local media rights being pooled. Aiding lower-revenue teams with extra and/or earlier draft picks theoretically wouldn’t be necessary any longer.

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